


Hope [Book 1: Water]

by jawe3no



Series: Primrose/Xanthe [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Canon Rewrite, F/M, Iroh (Avatar) is a Good Uncle, Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:55:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,932
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25122766
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jawe3no/pseuds/jawe3no
Summary: The sky never went dark. Mountains made of ice and blue sea that have watched him fail for the last two years. But green and gold eyes haunt him while he admires the icy land, imagining green fields, and hot summer days.He hopes for that light in the sky to not be another cold trail. He needs to find the Avatar. Prove himself to his father and recover his honor. Get Uncle and himself back home. Give a home to that mysterious girl that joined them in an attempt to escape her past.
Relationships: Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), Zuko (Avatar) & Original Female Character(s), Zuko (Avatar)/Original Female Character(s)
Series: Primrose/Xanthe [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1819834
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4





	Hope [Book 1: Water]

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing fanfiction since 2017. I wanted to go back to writing and decided that the best way was to go back to my roots and begin with fanfics, and since ATLA is cool again, why not? English is not my first language so writing in English and making it have sense sometimes is hard. But I found this amazing beta reader which I own the credit to help me write coherently. Thank you for responding to my call for help and taking your time to help me create this piece. This first chapter is dedicated to you.
> 
> I'm publishing this first chapter and see how it is received. The plan is to probably rewrite the three books with the small addition of this new character I'm introducing. I hope you end loving her as much as I do and let me know your thoughts!

The teapot was hot in her hands while she served two cups of tea in front of her. Iroh was winning their little game of cards that she still didn’t understand well, but it was nice playing with him. Firebenders always run warm, so being close to the General makes their staying between ice and more ice in the South Pole almost bearable. The Prince practiced his firebending at any given moment and the General was always glad to teach his nephew while still drinking tea with her. 

However, their tea and training were rudely interrupted by a strong light coming from not too far from the ship. The General sighed and she just smiled at him trying to comfort him. Both knew what that kind of event did to the Prince.

“Uncle, do you realize what this means?” He didn’t lose a second to look back at them when his false realization struck him.

“I won’t get to finish my game?” is his response, and she has to hide her laugh behind her hand. She can feel the Prince’s look on her because of that, but she ignores him and places her card on the small table. Iroh smiles at her and makes his move.

“It means my search is about to come to an end,” He sounded so sure about this, like every time he got a false lead. She tried to not feel pity for her past friend. She understands why he feels the need to find the Avatar, but she also thinks he could use this opportunity to begin a new life anywhere he wants to. Not going after a man’s wishes that want him gone. The general sighs again, and places his card after hers. “That light came from an incredibly powerful source! It has to be him!”

She usually doesn’t give her opinion on this kind of situation. At least, not since he made it very clear that the only reason he lets her stay in his ship is to pacify his uncle. She doesn’t want to give him a reason to throw her over the board. 

“Or it’s just the celestial lights. We’ve been down this road before, Prince Zuko,” His uncle answers, looking carefully at the cards to place his next move. “I don’t want you to get all excited over nothing.” The general places his card, and she cannot avoid a small smile; he’s just about to win the game, again. “Please, sit. Why don’t you enjoy a cup of calming jasmine tea? You know how good Primrose’s is!” The general draws — unnecessary, if you ask her — attention to her, while she looks down at the table, placing her correspondent card.

“I don’t need any calming tea!” The Prince screams, and she can’t help but flinch a bit. She knows both of them noticed, but actually hope they don’t address it. And they don’t, of course. “I need to capture the Avatar!” The general looks saddened and she just serves some more tea in both their cups. “Helmsmen, head a course for the light.” He orders and the crew don’t waste time following it. Iroh places his last card, winning the game. But he doesn’t celebrate like he usually would, and she understands.

She gets sent to the kitchen to work on her daily chores. The cook was almost always nice to her; he wasn’t when the General and the Prince got on his nerves. She was the only child in the crew besides the Prince, but she was also the only girl. She knows what her destiny would be if the General wasn’t there. Not every man is honorable.

Considering the events of that day, she knew that Iroh would like some tea before going to bed. She began to prepare some ginseng tea for him. But jasmine tea was also on her mind, the Prince’s favorite. Normally she would leave the tea in his bedroom and get the cups back in the morning, but considering how tense he was from his supposed lead to the Avatar, she was not sure she could get the cups back unscathed in the morning. She knows his temper.

She prepared the jasmine tea anyways. She knows he needs it. Two cups and two teapots in her tray, and begins her way to the Prince’s room first, hoping that like every day, he would wait until the last moment to go to his room to sleep and she can leave the tea without being spotted. But “hope” is only four letters and hasn’t really gotten her far.

She knocks on the door two times and waits for a few seconds. She’s about to open the door when the Prince himself opens it from the other side.

“Your Highness, I did not expect you to be in your room at this time, sorry for disturbing.” She apologizes, not looking at him, and does a small bow before motioning to leave.

“Wait, uhm…” She stops mid-step as he stops mid-sentence. He acted before thinking, but he already began, so why not finish? “You can leave the tea.”

She has to take a deep breath before nodding and take the step inside his room. It’s the first time in months he talks to her directly. She moves quietly through the room, sitting by the side of his bed, and begins to serve a cup of tea. He sits in front of her. He was already in his sleeping clothes, she noticed.

“I, uh, never asked you to bring tea every night.” He says awkwardly, as he was most of the time when they began to talk. But she’s not sure how to take that sentence. Did he want her to stop so there is no way they will have contact again? She would have to lie if you ask her if that thought didn’t hurt.

“Would you like me to stop doing it, Your Highness?” She tries to say with her most monotone voice. He visibly panics at that.

“No! I didn’t-” He wants her back. He doesn’t know how to explain it. He thought he would be okay just treating her like a servant. He thought he didn’t need her opinions or advice. He thought he didn’t need a friend, or even deserve her. But he feels like whatever they find here in the South Pole, he’s going to need Primrose. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

She takes another deep breath and serves some tea for herself. That conversation will take longer than she would like. “And what do you mean, Your Highness?” She asks, finally looking at him before taking a sip of her tea. He does the same, visibly awkward.

She looked at him, that was progression to his goal, right?

He told her, no; he ordered her to not talk to him like they were friends, even though he thought of her as a friend at that time. She was just following what he ordered her. He had to fix this, but had no idea how to. For what he knows she could just not forgive him and leave him alone as he asked.

Her heterochromatic eyes were fixed on his face, waiting for an answer. He always wondered about her life before they found her in that Earth Kingdom port. She had bender eyes, but nothing like he had seen before. Her left eye is gold like a firebender, the right eye is green like an earthbender, but she is a non bender. He would catch himself — more often than what he would like to admit — wondering about her and her eyes. 

It seems like he was lost in her eyes, again after a long time, because she clears her throat before talking again. “You asked me to not talk to you as if we were friends, and I just followed your order, Your Highness. I don’t know what you want from me.” He had to think very carefully about how to let her know that he wants to be friends again. Admitting he was wrong was out of the question. Saying that he was sorry was also not okay. Saying “thank you” for the tea? Maybe.

She was hopeful, though. She really hoped he would say that he was sorry, that he wanted to be friends again. But was not sure how to read the Prince’s expressions. After a few minutes she finally sighed and placed the cups and teapot back on her tray. “I better get going before the General’s tea grows cold.” She avoided looking at him again. Raised up with the tray in her hands, and left the room closing the door behind her. Spirits know how bad she wanted him to stop her and just be friends again.

Zuko screamed at himself, frustrated. He wanted to be on good terms with her before arriving at the place where the Avatar probably is. He is aware that he’s going to need her, but doesn’t want to bother her anymore. So, he waits a few minutes before going out of his room, and not stopping until he is at the top of the tower, looking straight towards where the light was earlier that day.

He knows what his Uncle and Primrose think about him. It’s been two — almost three — years and every time he thinks he has a clue, a trail, a hint, a possibility to find the Avatar; it ends up being false, a cold trail. They might as well be disappointed that they joined a banished Prince in a mission to catch a myth. But he doesn’t want to think about what would be of him if either his Uncle or Primrose left him.

Even though he knew how close they were of night time, the sky was as clear as midday. He stares at the clouds moving, changing, but the sun is still up. Not leaving his side. He hopes for that light in the sky to not be another cold trail. He needs to find the Avatar. Prove himself to his father and recover his honor. Get Uncle and himself back home. Give a home to that mysterious girl that joined them in an attempt to escape her past. 

“I’m going to bed now,” The voice of his Uncle interrupts his train of thought. He can hear his yawn and almost feel the way he stretches his body without even having to look back at him. “Yep. A man needs his rest. Prince Zuko, you need some sleep,” He almost snorted at that. “Even if you’re right and the Avatar is alive, you won’t find him,” He tenses at his words. He knew some kind of scolding was coming. “Your father, grandfather, and great-grandfather all tried and failed.”

He could feel his own blood boil in rage. Would his Uncle or Primrose ever understand? “Because their honor didn’t hinge on the Avatar’s capture,” He responded, eyes fixed on the sky and horizon. “Mine does,” He looks back at him, trying to make him understand why this was so important for him with his eyes. But felt like it was in vain, and went back to look straight in front of him. “This coward’s hundred years of hiding are over.”

He can hear his Uncle sigh and go back inside. The sky never went dark. Mountains made of ice and blue sea that have watched him fail for the last two years. But green and gold eyes haunt him while he admires the icy land, imagining green fields, and hot summer days. He would have asked his Uncle how to talk again with Primrose, but he also knows he hasn’t been the best nephew lately. His Uncle should understand though. He’s been here three years with him. And that is what frustrates him more. Three years of failed attempts.

Three years of learning anything the crew could teach him because there was nothing else to do. Three years of re-learning how to firebend because his vision and left ear were almost of no use. Three years of disappointments every time he had a false lead. He didn’t want to keep living this life. He wanted to go home, be the Crown Prince, have his mother back...

He decided it was enough, and finally made his way back to his room. A hot teapot of jasmine tea and a cup were waiting for him. A sigh escaped his lips and sat down to serve his tea. It was better not to keep thinking for that night.

By the time she woke up, Iroh was already training the Prince in the outer part of the ship. After she cleaned herself and dressed with that old and small uniform, her first task was retrieving the teapots and cups from the General and the Prince’s bedrooms. She brought them back to the kitchen to wash them, where the cook was preparing breakfast for the crew. She can see how the cook is already tense to be that early in the morning, so she just avoided him for the time being. Which didn't last long.

“The General wants roasted duck. Here you go.” It’s all the men say, leaving the plate with said food in it in front of her. Suddenly the cook’s tense attitude made sense. She takes a deep breath before placing the plate and some chopsticks in her tray and began her way to their location. She caught herself wanting to already be with the General and the Prince to get some warmth. She could feel the cold from the metal walls without having to touch it, her body shivering to it. 

When she finally emerges to the outer part of the ship, the Prince is practicing with two guards, while Iroh watches sitting in a chair. She doesn’t usually see him so serious like he is at that moment. “Again,” She can hear the general say the closer she gets, the early sun rays hitting her face, warming her up a bit. She leaves the tray next to the General and smiles at him, he smiles back and looks again towards his nephew. “No,” He interrupts the Prince, getting up from his seat. “Power and firebending come from the breath, not the muscles,” He shows with his own body, Primrose staring at him like he was explaining it to her instead of the Prince. “The breath becomes energy in the body. The energy extends past your limbs and becomes fire!” Iroh creates a stream of fire with direction at the boy, but it does not touch him. She can’t avoid looking amazed by it. “Get it right this time.”

“Enough,” Zuko says. She is surprised that he’s not screaming like he had yesterday. “I’ve been drilling this sequence all day.” Which, true, she had to give him a point, they have been training even before she woke up. “Teach me the next set. I’m more than ready.”

“No, you’re impatient,” Iroh was a calm man most of the time, so watching him being so tense about the situation just explains why the rest of the crew is also tense. The Prince was cranky most of the time, that was nothing new. But if the General is also in a bad mood, it must be more serious than she thinks. She doesn’t really know a lot about bending, her knowledge is more about herbs, tea, and medicine. “You have yet to master your basics. Drill it again!” He scolds his nephew, her body flinching without her wanting to. The scolding wasn’t even directed to her. She knows the Prince saw her flinch, but he says nothing, which she thanks in silence. 

She can see the anger in Zuko’s face before he looks back and bends fire with everything he can against the closer guard drilling with him. “The sages tell us that the Avatar is the Last Airbender. He must be over a hundred years old by now,” Again, he got a point, but we don’t even know if the Avatar is alive. She doesn’t have enough courage to say that out loud, though. “He’s got a century to master the 4 elements. I’ll need more than basic firebending to defeat him. You will teach me the advanced set!” Now it sounds like the Prince was scolding his Uncle. She just avoids looking at them for a moment. She needs to get over her flinches when people scream. It’s been five years since she left home. She really hoped to be over it at this point. But once again, hope doesn’t give her so much credit.

Iroh looks serious, but she’s surprised when his expression changes to a more lighthearted one. “Very well. But first, I must finish my roasted duck.” And once again, she had to hide her smile behind her hand. Iroh begins to eat with gusto while Zuko has mixed feelings in his face, between frustration and disgust.

The rest of the day passes a bit less tense. Even though the General said he will teach him the advanced set, he still made him drill the basics. And the Prince said nothing about it. She helped serve lunch and served tea to the general in the afternoon, just like every day. But the night was closing in when they all saw the signal coming from an abandoned fire nation ship.

Iroh was already asleep, and she was finishing her duties in the kitchen to leave tea in the Prince’s room when the word arrived at her. He found him. Zuko found the hundred years lost Avatar.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I'm excited to share it with you! Let me know if you have any thoughts! Feedback is always welcome, and I have a soft spot for theories, I guess haha  
> I'm also on Tumblr at @jawe3no if you're interested but is the least serious blog you'll find sooo  
> Hope to see you next time! Have a good day/afternoon/night~


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